On Intellectual Craftsmanship Student: Ilan Rozenbom Theories of Area Studies Graduate School of International Studies Sogang University By Charles Wright Mills
Charles Wright Mills 1916, Texas – 1962, New York. Sociologist. Took a faculty position in Columbia University. Sometimes considered a disciple of Weber. He published “The Sociological Imagination” in 1959, in which he argued that micro and macro levels of analysis can be linked together. In modern society, he stated that the Power Elite is made up of political, economic and military leaders who are closely linked.
The Sociological Imagination It is a quality of mind that helps us to use information and to develop reason in order to achieve lucid summations of what is going on in the world and within ourselves. It enables us to understand the larger historical scene in terms of its meaning for the inner life and the external career of a variety of individuals. It connects individual experiences and societal relationships "neither the life of an individual nor the history of a society can be understood without understanding both" Sociological imagination Information Reasoned Understanding Individual Society
Troubles and Issues Troubles occur within the character of the individual and within the range of his immediate relations with others. The statement and resolution of troubles lie within the individual as a biographical entity and within the scope of the social setting that is directly open to his personal experience and to some extent his willful activity. A trouble is a private matter: values cherished by an individual are felt by him to be threatened. Issues have to do with matters that transcend these local environments of the individual and the range of his inner life. They have to do with the organization of institutions of an historical society as a whole, with the ways in which they overlap and interpenetrate to form the larger structure of social and historical life. An issue is a public matter: some value cherished by publics is felt to be threatened. An issue, in fact, often involves a crisis in institutional arrangements, and often too it involves what Marxists call 'contradictions' or 'antagonisms.'
Troubles and Issues (examples) Unemployment When one man is unemployed, that is his personal trouble, and for its relief we properly look to the character of the man, his skills, and his immediate opportunities. But when 25% of the population is unemployed, that is an issue, and we may not hope to find its solution within the range of opportunities open to any one individual. The very structure of opportunities has collapsed. War The personal problem of war, when it occurs, may be how to survive it or how to die in it with honor; how to make money out of it; how to climb into the higher safety of the military apparatus; or how to contribute to the war's termination. But the structural issues of war have to do with its causes; with what types of men it throws up into command; with its effects upon economic and political, family and religious institutions, with the unorganized irresponsibility of a world of nation-states. Both the correct statement of the problem and the range of possible solutions require us to consider the economic and political institutions of the society, and not merely the personal situation and character of individuals.
Levels of analysis of the Sociological Imagination History How a society came to be, how it is changing and how history is being made in it Social structure How the various institutional orders in a society operate, which ones are dominant, how are they held together and how they might be changing Biography What varieties of women and men live in this society and in this period, and what is happening to them Sociological Imagination: the 'quality of mind' which allows one to grasp "history and biography and the relations between the two within society". “Ordinary people do not possess the quality of mind essential to grasp the interplay of man and society, of biography and history, of self and world"
Potential achievements of the Sociological Imagination IIt gives the ability to look beyond our local environment and personality to wider social structures and a relationship between history, biography and social structure. TThe appendix "On Intellectual Craftsmanship" gives an impressive insight into what a sociologist as a social scientist whenever working creatively (like an artist) is able to work out. IIt was written as a useful sense of method and theory (conceived as a craft) to be imparted to the beginning student
Work and Life are linked Admirable thinkers do not split nor dissociate their works from their lives. They use each for the enrichment of the other. Scholarship is a choice of how to live as well as a career. Learn to use your life experience in your intellectual work.
Keep a journal Set up a file, keep a journal. There you can join personal and professional activities studies under way and planned studies It helps you build the habit of writing. It encourages you to capture original and “marginal” thoughts: by-products of everyday life snatches of heard conversations Dreams Once noted, these can lead to more systematic thinking.
Master agenda Special little file for your master agenda. Which of my ideas should I work on next? Periodically review “the state of your problems and plans” Interchange this reviews with your fellows, including problems methods theories
Personal example on the study of elite The idea and the plan came out from the personal files. New ideas were born when reviewing the whole file. Changed daily routine to: meet people among elite; people in close contact with them; people professionally interested in them. Surrounded himself with people who listen and talk (sometimes imaginary characters)
Existing materials Types of existing materials Several theories having to do with the topic. Materials already worked up by others as evidence for those theories. Materials already gathered, but not yet made theoretically relevant. Types of statements regarding them Restate systematically what they say. Accept or refute with arguments. Use as a source of suggestions.
Data-Hunting IIn your notes and abstracts there are: many things you want to search for in other books; ideas for empirical studies. TThere is a lot of work to do: structuring existing material using reason; empirical inquiry to settle disagreements and doubts. FFour stages to deal with the materials: Elements and definitions Logical relations between them (models) Elimination of false views Statement and re-statement of questions that remain.
Ways of stimulating the Sociological Imagination Re-arrange the file. Being receptive to unforeseen and unplanned linkages. Have an attitude of playfulness toward the phrases and words with which various issues are defined. Look up terms and synonyms Elaborate different levels of generality Cast general notions into types. Make new classifications. Search for the conditions and consequences of each type. Search for common denominators and differentiating factors Develop the habit of cross-classification (charts, tables, diagrams). Consider extremes, the opposite of with which you are concerned. Begin constructing polar-types, opposites along various dimensions. Think from the perspective of other scientists and disciplines. Imaginarily change the scale of diminute or gigantic phenomena to be able to catch the differences or the generalities within them. Compare your problem with other civilizations and historical periods. Distinguish between them and topic. Topic: it is a subject (‘the increased power of military officials’ or ‘ the decline of traditional chamanic beliefs); all you have to say about a topic can be put into one chapter or a section. Theme: it is an idea, a master conception, a key distinction; there can be 2- 7 themes in your book and they appear into all sorts of topics, apparently repetitively. Then ask yourself and cross-classify themes and topics to find their relationships.
Clarity and simplicity Present your work in a clear and simple way. Social scientists tend to complicate their language based on certain misconceptions. Being a ‘journalist’ or a ‘literary man’. Overcome the academic prose and the academic pose: How difficult and complex is your subject? What status are you claiming for yourself? For whom are you trying to write?
Summarizing precepts and cautions You do not ‘start working on a project’, you are already ‘working’. Be a good craftsman: avoid rigidity and fashions, be imaginative, develop your methods and theories. Try to use clear statements. Use more elaborated terms when they enlarge the scope or the precision of understanding. Make trans-historical and trans-geographical constructions. Give examples. Study and understand the interplay of the different levels of analysis. Avoid the arbitrary specialization of prevailing academic departments. Keep change and variety in mind. Try to understand men and women as historical and social actors. Do not allow public issues as they are officially formulated, or troubles as they are personally felt, to determine your path.